[BOISE] – Attorney General Raúl Labrador joined a coalition of 20 attorneys general in filing an amicus brief in support of states attempting to stop the Biden administration’s collusion with immigration activists.
The brief, filed Friday in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, supports states’ motion to intervene in a lawsuit brought by asylum seekers and immigration activists against the Biden administration’s “Circumvention of Lawful Pathways” rule. Rather than defend the rule designed to protect states from the impacts of an open border, the Biden administration is in settlement talks with the plaintiffs. The proposed intervenor states are rightly concerned that the federal government no longer represents the best interests of their constituents.
“I’ve lost count of how many times the Biden Administration has chosen to support the goals of activists, special interests, and illegal immigrants over the safety, security, and sovereignty of our states and citizens,” said Attorney General Labrador. “This case is a clear example of the Biden Administration’s backwards and out-of-touch priorities, and our states and communities are paying the price every single day.”
In September 2023, asylum seekers and activists sued the federal government in M.A. v. Mayorkas, attacking the “first safe country principles.” Initially, the administration planned to defend the rule, but in February announced the parties were “engaged in discussions regarding implementation of the challenged rule and related policies and whether a settlement could eliminate the need for further litigation.”
In their brief, the attorneys general argue that states have standing to defend immigration rules and that states have an interest in preventing the Biden administration from circumventing the Administrative Procedure Act via “sue-and-settle” tactics.
Attorneys general from Alaska, Arkansas, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and Virginia joined brief co-led by Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen and Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody in filing the brief.